TYRONE - It's been a while since the Tyrone Area High School girls basketball team has left the court on the losing end of one of its games.
To be more precise, it's been 43 days.
From the opening tip of their Mountain League Allegheny Division game Wednesday night, the Lady Golden Eagles made certain that streak wasn't in jeopardy, as they blew out visiting Huntingdon, 67-33, to claim their 13th straight win.
"We came out and shot the ball with a lot of confidence tonight," Tyrone coach Luke Rhodes said. "We were really focused. We executed the game plan to perfection."
Tyrone played just about as perfectly as it could - especially in the first four minutes of the game - as each of the Lady Eagles' starters hit buckets before the Lady Bearcats could even score.
Tyrone (15-2, 6-0 Mountain Allegheny) built a 13-0 lead out of the gate, connecting on 6-of-11 shots from the floor.
Tara Smith finally got Huntingdon (8-9, 2-4) on the board with 3:41 left in the first quarter, but the Lady Eagles never let up and led 20-5 after one.
"We just were flat coming out," Huntingdon coach Craig Sellers said, whose team has lost three of its last four games. "We were outplayed, out-hustled, outcoached. We've been like that the last two weeks."
It didn't get any better for the Lady Bearcats, though.
Alayna Hettinger scored the first five points of the second quarter, and Morgan Taylor added another bucket to give Tyrone a 22-point lead just nine minutes into the game.
Seconds after Huntingdon's Brianna Rivello converted 1-of-2 from the free-throw line, Hettinger hit her second 3 of the quarter to extend the lead to 24.
And the lead just kept growing.
Tyrone held a 41-12 advantage at halftime and led by as many as 40 points in the third quarter before Rhodes finally slowed his offense.
The Lady Eagles finished the night 26-for-55 from the floor - which included a moot 1-for-7 effort in the fourth quarter - 8-for-20 from behind the arc and 7-for-10 from the free-throw line.
The Lady Bearcats, meanwhile, were only 12-for-48 from the floor, 3-for-18 from long range and 6-for-12 from the line.
"Our defense was the key tonight," Rhodes said. "Huntingdon is a team that can score. They shoot a lot of shots, and if you let them open, they hit them. I thought our girls did a great job of recognizing shooters, challenging and, most importantly, rebounding and getting out and running."
"I don't think we were as bad as the score showed, but Tyrone just wanted it more than we did tonight," Sellers said. "They were going at it, and we were just sitting back letting them do whatever they wanted to do."
Smith had 12 points for Huntingdon.
Jordyn Swogger paced the Lady Eagles with 16 points and five steals, while Hettinger finished with 13 points and five assists. Each of the nine players that dressed for Tyrone scored at least four points.
"Each girl I put in went in there and shot the ball with confidence," Rhodes said. "That's what we need to do as the season continues."
Game notes: Tyrone is 13-0 since losing to Hollidaysburg, 67-54, on Dec. 20. The Lady Eagles earned the season sweep of the Lady Bearcats. Tyrone won 68-56 at Huntingdon on Dec. 12. Olivia Stever had 10 rebounds for Tyrone.
HUNTINGDON (33): Smith 5 1-2 12, Marter 1 0-0 3, A. Sellers 0 0-0 0, Baird 0 0-0 0, Rivello 0 4-8 4, B. Sellers 3 1-2 7, Snyder 0 0-0 0, Kurtz 1 0-0 3, Shoemaker 2 0-0 4, Mansberger 0 0-0 0, Henney 0 0-0 0, Dearmitt 0 0-0 0. Totals 12-48 6-12 33.
TYRONE (67): Gripp 4 1-2 9, Stever 1 1-2 4, Swogger 6 2-2 16, Taylor 2 2-2 6, Hettinger 5 0-0 13, Brokenshire 2 1-2 5, Brooks 2 0-0 5, Raferty 2 0-0 4, Hammond 2 0-0 5. Totals 26-55 7-10 67.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Huntingdon5 7 12 9 - 33
Tyrone20 21 23 3 - 67
3-point goals: Huntingdon 3-18 (Kurtz, Marter, Smith), Tyrone 8-20 (Stever, Swogger 2, Hettinger 3, Brooks, Hammond).
Officials: Skip Dry, Ted Beam, Richard Wagner.
Records: Huntingdon (8-9, 2-4 Mountain Allegheny); Tyrone (15-2, 6-0 Mountain Allegheny).
JV: Tyrone, 46-13. High scorers-Gaugler, H, 4; Carroll/Cannistraci/Veit, T, 8 each.
